Miami And North Carolina Tie, 7-7
April 17, 2005
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – A predetermined game curfew due to Miami’s travel schedule left the sixth-ranked Hurricanes (29-9-1 overall, 13-4-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) and seventh-ranked North Carolina (28-8-1, 11-4-1 ACC) at a 7-7 10th-inning tie Sunday afternoon at Boshamer Field. UM’s Danny Figueroa scored the game-tying run on an error in the ninth inning.
It was the first tie for Miami since another 7-7 game, against Florida State in Coral Gables on April 20, 2005.
Ryan Braun went 2 for 4 with two RBIs to lead Miami. Matt Ellington hit his seventh home run of the season and was 3 for 5 on the day for North Carolina.
Miami sophomore Chris Perez pitched three innings of scoreless relief and did not allow any hits in the no-decision. UNC’s Matt Danford threw six and one-third innings of relief and allowed three runs on six hits, one walk and four strike outs.
Danny Figueroa was hit by a pitch to lead off the ninth and advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt by Paco Figueroa and a ground out by Braun. Jay’s two-out grounder went between the legs of third baseman Reid Fronk, allowing the tying run to cross the plate. Danny Figueroa drew a leadoff walk and advanced to third on a stolen base and wild pitch with one out. Ryan Braun lined out right field and Figueroa tagged from third for a 1-0 Hurricanes lead.
Carolina tied the score in the bottom of the first on a sacrifice fly to center by Chad Flack to score Greg Mangum, who reached base on an error to lead off the inning. Seth Williams led off the UNC second with a walk and scored on Mike Daniel’s double to right field to take a 2-1 lead. Justin Webb and Matt Ellington hit back-to-back home runs to lead off the Tar Heel third for a 4-1 lead.
UM starter Ricky Orta struck out Flack before being relieved by Manny Miguelez.
The Hurricanes got their first hit of the game on a double down the right field line in the fourth that scored Paco Figueroa from third to bring UM within 4-2. Roger Tomas knocked in Danny Valencia with a soft single to center for Miami’s third run of the game.
Tar Heel starter Adam Kalkhof was then replaced by Danford. Alex Garabedian greeted Danford with a game-tying single that scored Walter Diaz from third base.
Valencia broke the 4-4 tie with a two-out double down the left field line that scored Braun from second. UM padded its lead in the sixth when Eddy Rodriguez followed a one-out triple by Garabedian with an RBI single to right-center to go up 6-4.
Williams led off the Tar Heel sixth with his ninth home run of the season on a 0-1 pitch from Maine to put the score at 6-5, Miami. Danny Gil relieved Maine with runners on second and third and one out. Gil walked Ross Cook and gave up a sacrifice fly to Kyle Shelton that Craig Corrado to tie the game at 6-6. Andrew Lane relieved Gil and gave up a single to Ellington that scored Cook for the go-ahead run and a 7-6 lead.
Orta pitched two and one-third innings and gave up four hits, three earned runs, one walk and struck out two in his shortest start of the season. Kalkhof went three and two-thirds innings and gave up four earned runs on three hits, three walks and one strikeout.
Miami returns to action for a three-game series against Florida State beginning on Friday, April 22 at Mark Light Field.
Notes: Braun’s first-inning RBI was the 174th of his career, tying him with Jim Burt (2001-04) for eighth on the all-time list at Miami… UNC’s back-to-back home runs in the third were the first allowed by the Hurricanes since Nick Rogers and Ryan Barthelemy of Florida State went yard in consecutive at-bats on April 13, 2002…
